MarvelBlog News for October 13th, 2024

This week, we’ll discuss the unlikely return of Scarlett Johansson to Marvel, unrelated news on Spider-Man 4 and Sam Raimi, and…something else.

You will need to watch Agatha All Along Episode 1-5 before you read part of this week’s MarvelBlog News.

Of course, if you haven’t already seen the episode, it’s a miracle you haven’t been spoiled anyway. So, go do that now!

Don’t worry. You can read the first two-thirds of this without any fear of being spoiled. I’ll warn you, I swear.

ScarJo Is Back…ish

Okay, I’ve been covering other stories the past couple of weeks in MarvelBlog News, knowing I could come back to this one.

There’s really no rush, as the applicable title won’t come out until May.

Still, this particular news item made me idly wonder what the temperature was in Hell. It…may have frozen over.

Folks, Scarlett Johansson has returned to Marvel after one of the most aggressive breakups in recent Hollywood history.

In case you’ve forgotten – and I highly doubt that – Johansson publicly feuded with Marvel’s owner, Disney, regarding Black Widow.

When the actress signed the deal, she expected to receive a sizable paycheck based on box office.

Disney muddied the release due to the pandemic, offering it on digital as well, a tactic that didn’t pay Johansson any bonuses.

Outraged, the actress went public with her frustration, which caused then-CEO Bob Chapek to lambaste her in the media.

At that point, Johansson sued, and it appeared unlikely she would ever work with Marvel again.

Eventually, Bob Iger returned as CEO and smoothed over the situation, with Johansson reportedly cashing a huge check.

Disney paid lots of money to make the lawsuit go away and mollify the actress, at least slightly.

Still, few expected the parties to reunite anytime soon. Then, some things started happening behind the scenes.

Notably, Disney brought back the Russo Brothers, who have a good working relationship with Johansson.

Marvel also hoped that she would participate in some way with Thunderbolts*, which stars her character’s onscreen sister, Yelena Belova.

The very idea struck me as a moonshot just a year ago, but here we are.

Johansson now lists as an executive producer on Thunderbolts*, and I expect her to cameo in the film as well. Hollywood is wild.

All Things Spidery

Before I get to the meat of this week’s update, let’s quickly cover a couple of loosely connected stories.

Director Sam Raimi once made his reputation in Hollywood on the original Spider-Man trilogy.

While Raimi had lurked on the periphery for many years, his work on the Evil Dead franchise was decidedly B-movie in tone.

During the 1990s, Raimi was best known for Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and, later, Xena: Warrior Princess.

Then, Sony took a chance on Raimi by hiring him as Spider-Man’s director, and the rest is box office history.

Upon its release, Spider-Man was the biggest opening weekend blockbuster of all time and remained that way for a while.

Alas, the “jazz hands” fiasco in the third film led to a break-up between Raimi and Sony.

Then, he joined Marvel for Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, a film I personally loved that earned $956 million.

While the film didn’t quite hit the magical billion-dollar landmark, it would have if not for the pandemic.

Now, in a somewhat unexpected twist, Marvel is apparently prepping Dr. Strange 3 with Raimi once again directing.

Marvel had previously said it preferred new characters over third and fourth outings of existing ones…but here we are.

On the Sony front, insiders are reporting that Spider-Man 4 with Tom Holland will begin filming in May.

That’s actually a bit later than I’d heard, but balancing this cast’s various film and appearance schedules is a logistical nightmare.

Here There Be Spoilers!!!

Okay, here’s your warning. We’re done with the other Marvel news for the week.

Now, we talk about THAT spoiler from Agatha All Along episode 1-5. If you haven’t watched it, skip the rest! I will be getting specific.

Are you still here? It’s your last chance to back out. Okay, good. Here we go…

Yup, that kid isn’t Nicholas Scratch, folks. The character we’ve been calling The Teen all season serves a higher purpose.

As you know by now, the show’s creator, Jac Schaeffer, hid The Teen’s identity in plain sight.

I’d guessed it earlier in the season and ended the fourth episode’s recap by calling my shot. I was that confident.

Yes, folks, this isn’t a swerve, and Marvel’s not trying to trick you.

The character you’ve been watching all season, the one you’ve been calling The Teen, is in fact the child of Wanda Maximoff and Vision.

Wait, What?!

I watched episode 5 when it aired and then watched with amusement as the internet caught fire.

Apparently, not many people saw this coming, and they required some explanation.

To their credit, a few people and websites have had it since the beginning, which is something I can’t claim.

Still, the pieces came into position once the show revealed that a powerful sigil prevented The Teen from revealing his identity.

Since then, the show pushed hard on the red herring that he was Nicholas Scratch, Agatha’s dead son, only to refute that at the fourth episode’s end.

In episode five, after plenty of twists of turns, Agatha made the connection about why The Teen felt so familiar. He’s Billy, one of the twins.

Of course, the “answer” to this mystery raises more questions. Like, Vision is a robot. He can’t reproduce.

Also, the Darkhold lured Wanda by promising a reunion with her Twins, who don’t even exist. But now, at least one does. It’s a lot.

The show clearly laid out the path if you were paying careful attention, though.

Understanding the Reveal

If you’re confused, please allow me to lay it out for you, both in terms of the show and the overall storytelling methodology.

Remember that all this started because Wanda cast a spell over Westview.

As part of that spell, she brought twins into reality and uncovered the presence of the Darkhold in Agatha’s home.

Once Agatha’s curse broke, she embarked on the Witches’ Road to restore her lost power.

Before that happened, The Teen entered her home, meaning he was already in Westview. And he was drawn to someone with magic power.

The sigil hints that a powerful magic user cast it on him. Agatha doesn’t think it’s her, but she also wouldn’t know since the spellcaster forgets.

But The Teen isn’t walking the Witches’ Road for the reasons he’s stated.

He knows that somebody did something magical to him that’s literally inexplicable due to the sigil.

Why else would he join a coven of magic users to walk the road, knowing that any of them could be responsible unless he had good reason?

And what’s the best reason for him to walk the road? He’s missing his dearest loved one. It’s his twin brother.

Agatha Harkness has been helping her greatest enemy’s son, and she didn’t even know it until now. It’s remarkable storytelling.

Remember how the end of season one bent reality in Westview, bringing Billy into reality…but possibly not Tommy?

Now, Billy is either walking the Witches’ Road to find Tommy or to bring him into this existence.

So, the entire witchy setting is an intentional device for The Teen aka Billy Maximoff, aka the Marvel character known as Wiccan. How great is that?

 

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